The British Red Tractor quality assurance scheme has opted to pursue lifetime assurance for beef cattle. Currently cattle on farms in NI and Britain must be 90 days on a quality assured farm to qualify for the scheme.

The decision comes after an industry consultation which ran from January to March 2015 and proposed moving to lifetime assurance as a mechanism of protecting the Red Tractor brand. The consultation received 200 responses, with a number of farm organisations raising concerns that the proposal was impractical. While the vast majority of beef finishing units are quality assured, there are still significant numbers of calf producers and rearers who are not.

In a statement, David Clarke, CEO of Red Tractor, said: “Whilst we will progress the move to lifetime assured beef, the message we have heard loud and clear is that we must do so cautiously.”

The main implication for farmers relates to the fact that most major British retailers make the Red Tractor standard a prerequisite for doing business. It must be assumed that the same standard will be applied to Irish beef traded into the same supermarkets.

Reaction

The announcement has been condemned by the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU). The organisation’s president, Ian Marshall, said: “From the beginning of this process, farmers highlighted their anger at how Red Tractor had proceeded with a consultation on lifetime assurance before consulting about whether it is necessary. I find it deeply disappointing that they have chosen to ignore not only the majority of farmers who have taken part in this process, but also processors, auctioneers and other industry organisations who see little value in these proposals.”

The chief executive of the Livestock and Meat Commission (LMC) in Northern Ireland, Ian Stevenson, acknowledged that lifetime assurance has the potential to add significant bureaucracy to the industry.

“A move to lifetime assurance, whilst aspirational, could ultimately cost the NI beef industry approximately £1m to maintain current assurance levels, with no guarantee that this will be returned from the market,” he said.

Red Tractor opts for lifetime assurance

Plan could cost NI beef industry £1m in added bureaucracy, according to the Livestock and Meat Commission (LMC).